Door control devices which utilize cam switches therein are well known in the art. Examples of such door controlled devices are the door operators disclosed in the Catlett U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,220,051 and 4,333,270. Catlett utilizes cam controlled switches associated with the operator shaft for controlling various functions of the door operator in response to the position of the door or the operator shaft. The cam switches in the Catlett operators are not utilized for alarm purposes but rather for controlling various aspects of operation of the operator. Other known prior art such as the Cashman U.S. Pat. No. 4,124,847 discloses a door switch which is operable to sense opening of a door and actuate an alarm. Cashman is not utilized with a door control device.
A problem associated with the prior art devices such as Cashman which sense door position is that removal of the door control arm which interconnects the door control device to the door does not actuate an alarm when the door remains closed. This is particularly undesireable in high security applications which utilize door control devices such as door operators and door closers. The closer arm is a relatively rigid metallic member which in the past has been removed from the door control device and utilized as a weapon in high security penal institutions such as jails and prisons. In the prior art if the door control arm is removed from the door operator or the door closer and the door is not opened, no alarm will be sounded.
Accordingly, it is the provision of the present invention to provide a new and improved door control device which is operable to indicate when the closer arm has been removed from the door control device.